Friday, June 23, 2017

Careful surface preparation, product knowledge, and a skillful application are important for any painting project, from your home’s siding to an industrial silo.

These elements take on an even higher, more critical level of importance when it comes to heavy industrial machinery and equipment. The heat, vibration, exposure to corrosive materials, and general wear and tear these surfaces experience is tremendous, and if the painting or coating is not applied correctly it is doomed from the start.

As a case in point, let’s take a closer look at how we remedied a corrosion issue in this Wisconsin manufacturing facility.

Repairing Industrial Equipment Corrosion

There were several pieces of large equipment in this Wisconsin facility that had experienced severe corrosion. Other components of the same equipment, however, were faring just fine (the rate and nature of surface decay can vary like this!).

We worked with their plant manager, and put together a plan to only address those sections that needed help. And, thanks to our mobile, nationwide service capability, we literally had our heavy equipment in tow - our tow-behind, vapor-assisted sandblasting unit, to be more specific.

Let’s pause for a second.

What Is Vapor-Assisted Sandblasting, and What Are the Benefits?

Sandblasting has been the go-to method for heavy, industrial cleaning since the late 1800s. The process has improved and grown more effective/sophisticated with time, but the concept is still the same.

We use high-pressure streams of air & water to shoot a sand media at a heavily-corroded surface, blasting away the unhealthy buildup to uncover the healthy metal beneath. Rust can certainly be removed, but so can your excessive buildup of oil, grime, dirt, and other contaminants.

Vapor-assisted sandblasting uses 90% water, 10% sand. This keeps the level of aggregate needed to a minimum, while still providing the maximum level of effectiveness.

Now, back to our Wisconsin project.

Vapor-Assisted Sandblasting Services in Wisconsin - A Closer Look at the Process!

Safety and containment first, as always!

We began by tenting the area around the machinery to contain the debris during the blasting process. It may be substantially less than traditional sandblasting creates, but we still always work neatly and safely.

We also set up a ventilation system within the tent.

After the old, failed coating was removed, we applied a two-coat, high-temperature, urethane system. One of our coating experts spot checked the coating thickness throughout the painting portion of the project using a digital mil gauge to ensure that we were meeting our client’s exact specifications - this is standard procedure for us at Painters USA.

As you can see in the photos above, the results are drastic! Not only does the aesthetic value skyrocket, but these surfaces are now clean and well-protected.